Apparatus for continuously drawing and winding glass fibers



June 1942. P; MODIGLIANI APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY DRAWING AND WINDINGGLASS FIBERS Filed March 5, 1939 N N awe/Mm! i HERO MOD/GL/A /v/Patented in... 23, 1942 2,287,557 APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY DRAWING ANDWIND ING GLASS Piero Modigliani, Leghorn, Italy, minor to Owens-CorningFiberglas Corporation, Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of DelawareApplication Marchil, 1939, Serial No. ,259,705

In Italy March a, 1938 9 Claims.

The present invention relates to a process of V and apparatus forcontinuously drawing and winding glass fibers or filaments with a groupof rotatable and revoluble drums.

In drawing and spinning. by means of one drum, in order. to have theoperation of drawing as nearly continuousas possible, use has been madeoftwo coaxial drums, one in the extension of .the other, and when one ofthem is charged, the movable furnace with the drawplate-or spinningmechanism is shifted to the drum to be charged. This method, however, isdefective be-' cause during the change a portion of the filament whichthe drawing mechanism continues to produce is dispersed and also thefilament becomes attached to the drum, aside from the inconvenience andcomplications of readjusting the furnace and the spinning or drawingmechanism.

According to the present invention the change of the rotating drawingandwinding drums is made by making the system of drums revoluble about acommon central axis, without disturb-v ing the positions or theoscillatory movements of the furnace and without interference with thedrawing operation as the filaments or threads pass automatically fromone winding drum to the other during the change without becoming caught.In order further to assure continuity of the drawing during the passagefrom one to the other drum use is made of a cooling system for thefilaments in their passage from the spinning or drawing mechanism to therespective drawing drum. This cooling system also contributes to improvethe molecular structure of the thread and to impart certain desirableproperties thereto A machine for carrying out the method is 11-lustrated merely by way of example on the accompanying drawing, whereinFig. l is afront elevation of the right part of the machine, it beingunderstood that it is completed by another equivalent half at the left;Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of Fig. l with certain parts inelevation; and Fig. 3,is a top plan view of the eration at the timeisshown at 2; 3 is the drum which is-inoperative and charged, and in thisstate can be relieved of its charge by any suitable means, for example,by removing the drum and substituting another, or bycutting thedeposited felt, for example by an incision parallel with one or itselements or generatrices. A drum ready for operation is shown at 4, thatis, it is empty and is rotating at the rate of drawing. Three shafts 2',3 and t are mounted rotatably on two end platforms or discs like thatshown at the right in Fig. 1, and designated as 5, which extends fromthe right portion of the base I. Pulleys 2", 3" and 4" are fixed to therespective shafts 2', 3' and i; A pulley 8 is mounted somewhateccentrically with respect to the pulleys 2", 3", i", and serves toguide and transmit the drive from the drive shaft ii to the belt l2 heldtaut by the belt tension device E2.

The end platforms or disks 5 may be rotated by manually grasping thedisks or'a crank handle may be afilxed to the one end of the shaft 54;.

In either event the disks 5 at the proper time I pulley 8 thereon isconnected to any suitable source of motive power.

The operation of the machine is as follows: To advance the drums it isnecessary merely to rotate the two platforms 5. In the handling of threedrums, the rotational angular movement of 120 is imparted to therevoluble discs 5. It is clearly apparent from the arrangement of thepulleys and the belt that only two of the three drums are driven, to theexclusion of the drum which, after having been charged, comes to thesuccessive stage, which is displaced 120, with respect to the operativestage by the rotation of the discs, during the revolutions of thesedrums. r

The cooling coil interposed between the drawplate and the drawingiandwinding drum operates in desired .manner to cool the thread and therebyimproves its consistency, particularly for the drawing.

,In practice the number of drums may vary as desired although threeappear to give the best results. Although the invention is described andshown herein by way of example only, it is to be understood thatnumerous modifications may be provided therefor without departing fromthe the handling of alltypes of artificial fibers or filaments otherthan glass.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for continuously drawing and winding artificialfibers on, drums which comprises a rotary frame, three drums disposedthe previously idle third drum into engagement with said driving means.

2. In an apparatus for continuously drawing and winding artificialfibers on drums which comprises a horizontal rotary shaft, end platesmounted on said shaft, rotary shafts 'mounted near the edges of the endplates'equidistantly disposed therearound, a drum and a pulleyfixed- 1ymounted upon each.of said last mentioned shafts, a driving pulleymounted in the plane of the pulleys on said shafts and an endlesstransmission member'connecting said driving pulley with two of said lastmentioned pulleys and disengaging another and independent pulley.

3. In an apparatus for continuously drawing. and winding glass fibers ondrums, which comprises a horizontal rotary shaft, end plates mounted onsaid shaft, rotary shafts mounted near the edges of the end platesequidistantly disposed therearound, a drum and a pulley fixedly mountedupon each'of said last mentioned shafts, a driving pulley mounted in theplane of the pulleys on said shafts, an endless transmission memberconnecting said driving pulley with two of said last mentioned pulleysand disengaging another and independent pulley, and a drawing plateproducing 'glass fibers adapted to be charged on one of the drumsconnected with one of the driven pulleys.

4. In an apparatus for continuously drawing and winding glass fibers, ondrums, which comvin the plane of the pulleys on said shafts andeccentrically with respect thereto, an endless transmission memberconnecting said driving pulley with two of said last mentioned pulleysand disengaging another and independent pulley, and an oscillatorydrawing plate producing glass fibers adapted to charge one of the drumsscope of the invention, which maybe applied to nected with one of thedriven pulleys preparatory to charging the other drum connected with theother driven pulley, anda cooling device between said drawing plate andsaid drum assembly comprising a housing formed by a plurality of coilsadapted to convey a cooling medium therethrough.

6. In an apparatus for continuously drawing and winding glass fibers ondrums, which comprises a horizontal rotary shaft, circular end platesmounted on said shaft, three rotary shafts displaced 120 around theperipheries of the end plates, a drum and a pulley fixedly mounted uponeach of said last-mentioned shafts, a driving pulley mounted in; theplane of the pulleys on said shafts and eccentrically with respectthereto, an endless transmission member con necting said driving pulleywith two of said lastmentioned pulleys and disengaging another andindependent pulley, an oscillatory drawing plate producing glass fibersadapted to charge one of the drums connected with one of the drivenpulleys preparatory to charging the other drum connected with the otherdriven pulley, said first mentioned horizontal shaft being rotatablesuccessively 120 to bring the charged drum into disengaging positionwith the driving pulley, and

simultaneously to bring the other driven drum .into operative positionwith respect to the drawing plate and a previously empty and idle druminto driving engagement with the driving pulley.

loss of motion or fiber in consequence of a parconnected with one of thedriven pulleys preparatory to charging the other drum connected and apulley fixedly mounted upon each of said last-mentioned shafts, adriving pulley mounted in the plane of the pulleys on said shafts andeccentrically with respect thereto, an endless transmission memberconnecting said driving pulley with two of said last-mentioned pulleysand disengaging another and independent pulley,

an oscillatory drawing plate producing glass tial rotation of said frameto remove said first drum from charging position and to place saidsecond drum into charging position.

8. An apparatus for continuously drawing and a 'winding artificialfibers on drums comprising arotary frame, a plurality of drums displacedangularly on said frame and rotatably mounted therein, and means forsimultaneously driving the drum being charged with the artificialfibers.

and the next successive drum to be charged, whereby said second drum isin condition to assume its charging function smoothly without loss ofmotion or fiber in consequence of a partial rotation of said frame toremove said first drum from charging position and to place said seconddrum into charging position.

9. An apparatus for continuously drawing and winding artificial fiberson drums comprising a rotary frame, a plurality of drums angularlydisposed around said frame and rotatably mounted therein, common meansfor simultaneously driving the drum being charged with the artificialfibers and the next successivedrum to be charged, whereby said seconddrum is in condition'to assume its charging function smoothly withoutloss of motion or fiber in consequence of a partial rotation of saidframe'to place said second drum into charging position and to removesaid first drum from charging position whereat the same isdisconnectedfrom said drivfibers adapted to charge one of the drums coning meanspreparatory to the handling .of the' fibers charged thereupon.

PIERO MODIGLIANI.

